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Debbie Allen won a Primetime Emmy in 1982 for choreographing the TV series Fame. She plays Dr. Catherine Fox on Grey’s Anatomy. In 2000, she founded the Debbie Allen Dance Institute in Culver City, California.
Names, aliases, and relatives of Debbie Allen — birth name, kin, and personal ties.
Debbie Allen by the numbers — life, work, and family.
Debbie Allen — early life, career, personal life, and legacy.
Deborah Kaye Allen was born in Houston, Texas in 1950. Her mother, Vivian Ayers, is a Pulitzer-nominated poet, and her father, Andrew Arthur Allen, was an orthodontist. To escape the racism and segregation of 1950s Texas, the family lived in Mexico for a period, where Allen and her siblings learned Spanish fluently. She graduated cum laude from Howard University in 1971 with a BFA in Classical Greek Literature, Speech, and Theater.
Allen first played Lydia Grant in the 1980 film Fame, and reprised the role in the TV series Fame from 1982 to 1987. For her choreography on the series, she won a Primetime Emmy Award in 1982. She later directed and produced episodes of A Different World, using her experiences at Howard University. Since 2005, she has portrayed Dr. Catherine Fox on Grey’s Anatomy, and she also directed multiple episodes of the show.
Allen married former NBA player Norman Nixon in 1984; they have a daughter, Vivian Nixon, who is an actress and dancer. Allen was previously married to Winnfred Wilford from 1975 to 1983. Her sister is actress Phylicia Rashad. Allen’s mother, Vivian Ayers, is a poet and art director who was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize.
Allen received an Academy Honorary Award in 2021 for her contributions to film and television. She has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame 1991 and several honorary degrees. In 2000, she founded the Debbie Allen Dance Institute in Culver City, California.
The complete filmography of Debbie Allen — every film, TV show, and documentary credit, ranked by popularity.
Every award, honor, and recognition received by Debbie Allen — Grammys, hall-of-fame inductions, civic honors, lifetime achievements.
Debbie Allen's bibliography — every authored, edited, and co-written book, ranked by edition count.
Little-known facts about Debbie Allen — origins, oddities, and behind-the-scenes details from a public life.
Received an honorary doctorate from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, the same institution that denied her admittance to its dance department when she was sixteen years old because she was told she had the wrong body type for dance.
Her father died just ten days after accompanying her to the Emmy Awards ceremony where she won for Best Choreography for Fame in 1982.
Daughter of dentist Arthur Allen and Pulitzer-nominated poet Vivian Ayers, she has older siblings: jazz musician Tex and actress Phylicia Rashad, and a younger brother Hugh Allen.
Her husband, Norman Nixon, is a former NBA player for the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers.
Received the first Lena Horne Award for Career Achievement at the Soul Train Lady of Soul Awards.
Choreographed five Academy Award shows.
Her mother, Dr. Vivian Elizabeth Ayers, was the first poet in Texas nominated for a Pulitzer Prize in 1952 and was often called the Poet Laureate of Texas.
Has been nominated for two Tony Awards: in 1980 for Best Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical for a revival of West Side Story, and in 1986 for Best Actress in a Musical for playing the title character in a revival of Sweet Charity.
Founded the Debbie Allen Dance Institute in Culver City, California in 2000.
Her daughter Vivian Nixon performed the role of Anita in a 2006 revival of West Side Story, the same role Debbie played in the 1980 film.
Earned a BFA in classical Greek literature, speech and theater from Howard University, and later received an honorary doctorate from the same institution.
One of only four people to appear in both the musical film Fame 1980 and the television series Fame 1982, along with Gene Anthony Ray, Albert Hague, and Lee Curreri.
Her daughter Vivian Nixon starred as the lead in the Broadway musical Hot Feet; she trained at the Kirov Academy of Ballet and Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.
In 1972, her mother Vivian’s work Workshops in Open Fields was recommended to the nation as a prototype of grass roots programming by the director of the NEA.
Is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
Her role as Lydia Grant on the television series Fame earned her three Emmy nominations and one Golden Globe nomination.
Awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Television at 6904 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on October 11, 1991.
Ex-sister-in-law of Victor Willis and Ahmad Rashad.
Has said that the war drama Glory 1989 is her favorite film.
Received the Legend Award at the 9th annual Essence Black Women in Hollywood event.
Is the only person to appear in all three versions of Fame: the 1980 film, the 1982 TV series, and the 2009 remake.
Studied drama at the HB Studio in Greenwich Village, New York City.
Has arthritis in her right shoulder and right ankle.
Her mother worked as a mathematician at NASA.
Grew up in Mexico for a period to escape racism.
Friends with Bill Cosby and Vanessa Bell Calloway.
She and her elder sister Phylicia Rashad both made guest appearances on The Love Boat 1977.
Quick answers to the questions readers ask most about Debbie Allen.
Celebrities similar to Debbie Allen — same craft, ranked by reach.
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